Thoughts from the interface of science, religion, law and culture

After spending several years touring the country as a stand up comedian, Ed Brayton tired of explaining his jokes to small groups of dazed illiterates and turned to writing as the most common outlet for the voices in his head. He has appeared on the Rachel Maddow Show and the Thom Hartmann Show, and is almost certain that he is the only person ever to make fun of Chuck Norris on C-SPAN.

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OMG! Takei Didn’t Say ‘Under God’

World class badass George Takei was on MSNBC recently and recited a portion of the pledge of allegiance while answering a question. But he didn’t include the “under God” part. Predictably, Glenn Beck’s website is clutching their pearls so incredibly hard right now.

“Well, when I pledge allegiance to the United States, I say, ‘One nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all,” he said, referring to the states where same-sex marriage is now legal. “One-third of the nation now has equality. Now, we have to work on the other two-thirds, so we’re keeping our sleeves rolled up.”

Naturally, this is curious, because the Pledge actually reads, “I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

There’s nothing curious about it. He’s reciting the pledge as it was originally written, before Congress decided it had to be changed to add “under God” to it.

Yep, I used to say it the same way that George did when I was teaching and we had to do that annoying pledge and “moment of silence”. I said the pledge and then sat down in front of my computer to take attendance while a few of my students observed that “moment of silence” thing.
A few of my more savvy students noticed and started leaving out the “under god” part, too.
A majority of the class sat down and chatted during the “moment of silence”. I made no move to stop them.

Couldst be. My father (who is 70+) says that he sometimes still stumbles over the ‘under god’ bit since that was added during his lifetime, well after the age that it’s drilled into a USAian kid’s head. I found out about it when I saw an old Porky Pig cartoon where he recited the pledge with no ‘under god,’ since at the time the cartoon had been made, it hadn’t been added. Likely Takei is in the same position, being roughly the same age.

Funnily enough, the pledge had already gone through one revision already. I read someplace that the original version was “I pledge allegiance to the (or my) flag and to the republic for which it stands; one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

My cohort, born around 1947, were compelled to relearn the pledge early in our grade-school careers because of “under God” getting added in. Can you imagine the stress that put our little seven-year-old brains through?

And that same cohort went on to become the first wave of dirty Godless immoral anti-war Commie dopesmokin’ hippies!! Coincidence? I think not!!

Beck should be thanking his (and his “god’s”) lucky stars that Takei is even willing to receipt the pledge. This is a man who was unconstitutionally incarcerated with his family for the crime of being Asian during WWII. It is nothing short of miraculous that people like Takei can still stand to live in this country, much less support it.

Takei is his 70s. He would have memorized the godless version, and almost certainly recited it daily while in grade school. It is not at all surprising that that is the version he relied on when making an impromptu comment during an interview.

Yeah, George Takei had to recite the Pledge of Allegiance while he was growing up in a prison camp for (unconstitutionaly) detained Japanese Americans during World War 2.

Now how friggin’ ironic is that? Takei learned the Pledge of Allegiance while he and his family were unlawfully detained as potential enemy collaborators – merely on the fact that they were Japanese Americans – and he was forced in the prison camp school to recite a pledge of allegiance to the flag of a country that was – in fact – denying him the “liberty and justice” that supposedly was “for all.”

Why WOULDN’T a god indulge in fantasy? Plus, it’s one of the easier ways to ‘know’ the aliens you are attracted to. Also, according to fanfic, Sulu/Takei has the hots for just about anyone on the ship.

To be honest, I had never thought much about the pledge until people started talking about this. If you say it out loud both with and without “Under God”, at least in my opinion, it flows better without it.

I pledge Allegiance to the flag
of the United States of America
And to the Republic for which it stands
One Nation, Indivisible, with liberty and justice for all

By adding the words “Under God” you are automatically creating a division that the next word says you wouldn’t do. Without “Under God” it means liberty and justice for ALL, with it, it is only liberty and justice for some.

I pledge allegiance to the Constitution
of the United States of America,
And to the republic that it defines:
One nation, indivisible,
With freedom and justice for all.

I don’t need no stinkin’ flag. Years and years ago, when it was still carved on stone, I received a copy of the Constitution, and all the amendments then in place, when I graduated from high school. I had that for decades, and only replaced it when it fell to shreds when I pulled it out of my computer bag. I have never understood the reverence afforded to a piece of brightly colored cloth.

In 1971, Mad Magazine published a version and a flag which I will cop to having influenced my thinking:

I WILL PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS WHEN IT IS ONE NATION UNDER GOD WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL INCLUDING KIKES, WOPS, SPICS, NIGGERS, WASPS, ETC.

I didn’t notice the God part and even Mad Magazine wasn’t very gay-friendly back then (neither was I until some years later.)

Eoraptor, as a German kid growing up in the US, I was aware of American flag fetishism and thought it was just as silly and dangerous as when Germany did it, and found it painfully ironic that some Americans like to make fun of Germans over it.

I prefer the original, which reads (with no comma between nation and indivisible), “I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” If it was good enough for the author, it’s good enough for me.

@15 I was at the Memorial Day Museum in Waterloo, NY a few years ago, and during my chat with the curator, mentioned the original salute. She told me I was the first visitor she had spoken to, that knew about it. I think it will probably remain out of fashion.

If you say it out loud both with and without “Under God”, at least in my opinion, it flows better without it.

I think that was actually one of the objections made at the time of the change. Yes, it does flow more smoothly without it.

And this lead to a situation where I won an argument with Michael Newdow concerning the Pledge. He’d led an Atheist Alliance convention in the pledge of the allegiance and paused before the word “indivisible.” But there is no pause. It’s an entire idea: one nation indivisible. The awkward break was only introduced when “under God” was brought in, destroying the rhythm and leaving trace of a later insertion. If you leave it in when you say the original Pledge then you are subtly indicating that something which WAS there was removed — something which belonged.

So how did I win the argument? The wise Emmet Field was there with his ‘Bank of Wisdom’ booth selling nice reproductions of the original pledge. We went and looked at it. No comma after “nation.”

Hmm, back before I decided loyalty oaths were disturbingly fascist and actually still ever said the pledge, I always dropped the “under god” bit, what with it being a violation of the 1st Amendment and also me being an atheist.

1 – Never got why you were pledging to the flag, and not the country. It’s a piece of cloth, people. . . .
2 – Why are the nutters sooo insistent that people who don’t believe in God swear to him? That’s just a way of lying, really. . .
3 – has anyone ever challenged the constitutionality of the ‘under God’ bit? Seems if would fail the whole freedom of religion bit . . .

As for George Takei, having read his autobiography To the Stars I consider him among America’s heroes (a very large group) since he not only still loves this country after internment under Executive Order 9066 but served ably in its governance for many years (on the Los Angeles city council.)